Appreciation
by Lulu-Prints
Summary: A special dedication to Shishido Ryou on his birthday, 29th September! Ootori finds himself in a confusing and awkwardly wrong situation, how will Shishido come to his Kouhai's rescue? Will things happen between the silver pair of Hyoutei then?
1. Waking up

**Disclaimer :** I do not own Prince of Tennis & the hot tennis princes inside, although like everyone else out there, I really wish I did.

**Note to all : **A special dedication to my favourite Silver pair from Hyoutei, Prince of Tennis, on Shishido Ryou's birthday! (29th September) Rated M for boys' love, don't read if you can't stand it. This is my first official one-shot (Official story on the next *page*), so pardon me if it doesn't make any sense! Hope you guys will enjoying reading.. Reviews are greatly appreciated. Thank you all once again!

_Firstly.. Part 1 - The teaser_ (: Will be updated soon! Promise!

**Finally, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHISHIDO RYOU!**

* * *

It had been awfully easy to fall asleep, and once Choutarou found himself asleep, his mind automatically brought him to his happy place - A place where he was allowed to play his violin casually, as he wished, whenever he wished, however he wished, a place where there was no one else to tell him off for everything, a place where the only other person around was the only person he really wanted and needed, Shishido Ryou Senpai.

Choutarou found himself seated beneath a tree he had singled out as his favourite within the garden in his happy place, for its thick canopy provided him with all the shade and cover he needed. Beside him, the Shishido Senpai of his imagination was smiling serenely, his sky-blue cap left aside on the soft grass as his choppy brown hair danced with the breeze. Choutarou struggled not to blush as he slided his hand into his Senpai's bigger, protective hand, but failed horribly as Shishido Senpai's quiet chuckle rang beside his ear. This was, really, all that he needed - A perfect picture of him with his Senpai, with no one else around to bother them..

It had been so easy to fall back into his old habits, only this time, there came this nagging voice ringing at the back of his head after a while of peace. The voice was soft and musical, yet it sounded almost too loud in contrast to the gentle silence of his happy place.

The voice was telling him to wake up, that something was seriously wrong, and that he needed to stop dreaming about being with Shishido Senpai for the moment : It was telling him exactly what he didn't want to hear.

But Choutarou knew better than to ignore this voice, to push it to the back of his head. For all he knew, it might be an important message conveyed to him by God's messengers, and he would be foolish to be ignorant about it. Feeling much disappointment and gloom as his happy place dissolved into a dreamy haze around himself, Choutarou whispered a soft goodbye to Shishido Senpai before sliding his hand out of the senior's. Eyes drifting close slowly, Choutarou sighed again as his mind forced itself to start up.

Finally, as his mind pulled itself free of the remnants of the dreamy haze, Choutarou reluctantly blinked his eyes open to the sight of a patch of blank darkness, as though all the lights in the room were out. He had been sleeping before this, Choutarou knew for sure, and he felt a little disorientated to find himelf in a sitting position, sitting on a soft and cushy surface that he assumed was a bed. And no, it wasn't just the lights in the room, the silver-haired boy realized only later as he shook his head to clear his thoughts, abruptly feeling the binding sensation all around his head. He was blindfolded.

Panic flooded through his veins, and Choutarou then tried to tear the dark fabric covering his eyes, his voice trapped in his throat in a frightened gasp. However, the second year realized almost immediately that he wouldn't be able to move anytime soon, let alone to try to regain his sight.

He was bound tightly at several places along the length of his arm in a series of wraps and cinches, forcing his palms to meet in an awkward manner behind his back, and he felt the pressure mainly his at his wrists, where he felt a thin cord almost cutting into his flesh in a painful manner. The cord which was holding him down kept his hands in a stiff and torturing position behind his back, but not yet tight enough to draw his shoulder back, although Choutarou later realised that he was held against the a cold surface in the siting position he had found himself in, one that was almost done on purpose. Aftefr a while, Choutarou realised that he was indeed on a bed, and he was held in place against the bedstand.

Questions were flooding his mind, now that the silver-haired boy realised he wasn't allowed to move. He felt no gag around in his mouth, which meant that he could scream if needed, but finding himself being blindfolded just after he had awoken had been confusing enough. He didn't even know where he was, let alone whose bed he was on, and why he was bonded in such a weird manner.

_What.. What's going on.._


	2. Walking into

**Disclaimer :** I do not own Prince of Tennis & the hot tennis princes inside, although like everyone else out there, I really wish I did.

**Note to all : **A special dedication to my favourite Silver pair from Hyoutei, Prince of Tennis, on Shishido Ryou's birthday! (29th September) Rated M for boys' love, don't read if you can't stand it. Pardon me if the story doesn't make any sense: I really wanted it to be a one-shot, but hell, I think I really write a little too much. So here's hoping you guys will enjoying reading.. Reviews are greatly appreciated. Thank you all once again!

_Part 2 ~_

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHISHIDO RYOU!**

* * *

With his fist clenched, knuckles hard and white against the door to his home, supporting his weight as his other free hand dug furiously in his pockets for his keys, Shishido Ryou cursed once more as he almost found himself locked out of the house again. Damn, detentions really made him tired and agitated without fail, even more so than tennis or normal classes. Finally, just a moment before the third-year would have conceded, Ryou's ears picked up a gentle tinkle of metal within his bag as he swung it off his shoulders. After throwing aside most of his belongings, Ryou finally found his keys resting neatly in his half-emptied pencil box - Possibly the least possible place Ryou would normally expect his keys to be at.

_That's so lame. How did it get there? _Ryou's eyebrows were raised so high they would've disappeared into his fringe, which said something, because he was still wearing his ocean-blue cap. However, knowing this familiar situation, he had most probably just left it there himself and had forgotten all about it. Shrugging off his confusion, and in his haste to open the door, Ryou had, unfortunately, failed to notice the tiny crimson bow knotted neatly on his bedroom key.

The house was engulfed in darkness, a sight he was too familiar with by now. He had already gotten used to his broken family years ago, no thanks to his father, who had been the unfortunate one made to keep him until he was of age. However, since then, his father had made it a habit to return home dead in the night reeking of cigarettes, beer and women - That was, most possibly, the reason why Ryou's mother had chosen to leave him and his useless father since he was young..

Of course, Ryou was repulsed by his father. However, he alone couldn't afford to stay in the school hostels even though Hyoutei was a boarding school, and his father had wasted all his money on his _private_life, so he really couldn't do anything about this. His father had been kind enough to accept that the fact that Ryou has to stay until the end of his high-school days, although that really didn't help in making things easier..

Coming home to a broken home, to an empty, silent house; That, he had already gotten used to.. Wait, silent house?

Ryou paused at the doorway, head jerking up automatically as his whole body froze, his train of thoughts abruptly leaping onto a whole new different track. He hadn't expect to hear the sound of things getting knocked over, which meant that someone else was in the house. _Someone else.. Father? No, he wouldn't bother to be home early, and even if he did, he'd at least have the decency to switch on the lights. Which means.. Someone is.. Some else is here.. A thief? _Brows furrowed as he slipped off his shoes quickly, Ryou padded softly towards the kitchen, where he concluded that the sounds had issued from..

BANG.

_Someone, whoever that someone is, is really trying to wreck the kitchen, _Ryou thought as he leaned his weight easily against the wall, such that he could try to hear what was going on in the kitchen..

BANG.

_What the-_

"Mukahi _Senpai_, will it kill you to be quiet just for a little while more?" Normally, Ryou would snicker when he hears Hiyoshi picking a fight with Gakuto, but this time, he found his voice stuck awkwardly in his throat. What the hell is Hiyoshi and Gakuto doing in his kitchen this late in the evening?

"Hiyoshi, don't.." It seems like there's something special going on today. Normally, he wouldn't expect to find Gakuto and Hiyoshi lurking in his kitchen, let alone Oshitari-

"Shut up, shut up! That has nothing to do with.. I've been in this position for 10 whole minutes already!"

"Mukahi _Senpai_, may I remind you that you're the one who picked the spot under the sink-"

"I said, shut up!"

"- so it's entirely-"

BANG.

"- your fault-"

"I said, ouch, SHUT UP!" _The sink? Oh, that must have hurt.._

"Hiyoshi, stop it. Gakuto, keep your voice down. Shishido might come in any-"

"But _Yuuuuuuuushi_, _he_ started it!"

"..."

"Kabaji. How long more is Shishido going to make ore-sama wait? Ore-sama is getting tired."

"Atobe, the most he could take is a couple of minutes more, which reminds me.."

"Ah, a chance, neh.."

"Nn~? It seems like there was something wrong about the data you've collected, Oshitari-"

"Usu."

"Ore-sama has made it a point to come all the way here-"

"I don't think so, Atobe, he might be just outside right-"

"No matter, ore-sama is getting impatient."

"See! Yuushi, Atobe gets to whine, why can't I-"

"Ore-sama is not whining!"

"Shut up, Mukahi Senpai-"

"You shut up too!"

...

It's a surprise to hear that Atobe was here too, that sure means that something serious was going on. Ryou could almost picture his Hyoutei Regulars in the kitchen - Jiroh must be sleeping as usual, for Ryou hadn't heard his voice. Choutarou must be too frightened to speak, or is unable to speak, presumably, which meant that Gakuto had most probably stuffed him into the dishwasher, or something along those lines, seeing that the red-head is so terribly at finding hiding spots..

_Wait, something serious? Today's.. Today's.. Oh. Today's my birthday? Wait a minute.. Oh, shit, no._

Birthdays are fun, of course, but never so for the birthday boy himself. Ryou faintly recalled the misfortunes Gakuto suffered just a couple of weeks ago, and felt a clear drop of sweat roll down his side profile. That probably meant that his Hyoutei Regulars had something planned for.. Ah. Should he assume..? Finally deciding that he was mentally prepared enough, and that he had made the entire tennis team wait long enough, Ryou sighed loudly, making sure that his voice was carried all the way into the kitchens..

And he kicked the door open roughly, taking care not to step through it before all dangers were clear. As expected, Ryou shook his head as he watched a waterfall of thick, emerald liquid fall onto the spot where he was supposed to be standing on. He'd have to make them clean that up later - Their sense of creativity and way of surprises hadn't improve at all since Gakuto's birthday (12th September)..

The clash of a plastic bucket onto the ground was closely followed by the locking of gazes in his direction and sighs of relief, accompanied by jeers of course, led by Gakuto, who looked like he was going to throw Ryou (or himself, actually) against the wall.

"Finally.." Ryou chanced a peek at the only blue-haired boy on the team, and risked a tiny grin at the said boy before smirking widely at an angered Gakuto.

"Oi! Ryou! You ruined half our fun like that!"

Hastily lifting up his fingers to his ears to prevent himself from going deaf, Ryou admitted defeat as he stepped into the kitchens slowly, careful to avoid the puddle of unknown liquid before him. Hyoutei Regulars all had a bad habit of interrupting each other as they spoke, so it was natural to assume that an argument is going to take place soon enough..

"Ah.. Ryou is.. Ryou is here.."

Ryou's attention was captured by Hyoutei's sleeping beau- master as the said boy stirred. To his surprise, the first to react to Jiroh's voice was actually Atobe. Watching as his captain approached the golden-haired boy quickly, Ryou blinked twice to make sure he wasn't just seeing things, and he decided to avert his attention after he had.. Ah, confirmed that he wasn't dreaming about seeing Atobe stroking Jiroh's hair in such a icky, loving manner..

"It's okay, Jiroh, go back to-"

"Yuushi, it's not fair! You guys-"

"- sleep, ore-sama will handle things from-"

"But Kei.."

"- did it to me on my birthday-"

"No, don't talk. Just sleep. Ore-sama will handle things from-"

"- and Ryou just-"

Not that he wished to comment, but Gakuto was standing awfully close to Oshitari, too. This couple had already made their relationship pretty clear by now, but it's just a little disorientating to see it so up close. Perhaps it was the overwhelming fact that he was having his birthday 'celebrated' in such a weird fashion, it was making him see things that he'd normally rather ignore. Ryou shook his head and glanced at Hiyoshi, who seemed to be the only other normal person around, other than Kabaji of course. Then again, Kabaji isn't really very normal as well..

"- here. Kabaji, watch Jiroh for me while Ore-sama-"

"Usu."

"Gakuto, calm down."

"..."

"- escaped it like that! No fair no fair no fair!"

"No offence, but you fail, Mukahi Senpai."

"Yuuuuuuuushi- Oi, Hiyoshi-"

"- Well, forget it. Gakuto, ore-sama will make you run rounds tomorrow if you-"

"- just shut up!"

"..."

"But Atobe, it wouldn't be fun like that, there's only half the fun left-"

"Gakuto, that's about enough."

Everyone's still the same.. Except there were certain things that were really out of place here, not that he was going to be naive enough to comment about the things that he'd noticed anyway. Besides, he had been wrong about his conclusion about Choutarou - It seems like his favourite Kouhai isn't even in the kitchens at all, now that he had roughly inspected most of the possible hiding spots in the room. If the Regulars were going to 'celebrate' his birthday, it would be impossible to keep Choutarou out of it, so that means that.. Choutarou must be smewhere else.. Nearby. Brows raised once more as he caught Gakuto's comment before Oshitari cut the red-head off mid-sentence, Ryou leaned against his dining table, and shot an interested glance at each of his Regulars.

"Oh? Half the fun? What's the other half? And oh, what did you guys _do _to Choutarou?"

Everyone fell silent at his comment, their change of expressions much too obvious as Ryou made a second glance around the room. Atobe was now smirking rather widely, and that Oshitari was actually chuckling.. Chuckling! Hiyoshi had raised his hand to his forehead in an I-gave-up-on-you-Senpai manner, and Kabaji had, somehow, managed to duck behind the dining table and was now searching for something in a bag (Ryou assumed, he couldn't really see.). Gakuto had turned into a half-frozen statue by Oshitari's side, now looked like he was going to throw the whole dining table at Ryou for being stupid.

"Baka! Ryou, you're mean! Now we have to give you your present early, and I don't even get to eat the cake first!"

* * *

He'd tried. Right now, that was all that mattered, no matter whether he was able to free himself in the end..

That was all Choutarou could think of to comfort himself as the silver-haired boy tried to repress his shivers, as he tried not to burst out crying in confusion, as he tried to sit as still as possible on the bed. Because of his previous fruitless struggles, Choutarou had somehow managed to tighten the bonds all across the length of his arm, particularly near his palms and his wrist. Wincing and tearing slightly at the pain as the white cords dug into his flesh mercilessly, Choutarou bit down on his lips and tried not to move anymore.

No, actually, Choutarou realised a little later, his form relaxing just a little as a certain memory found its way to the surface of his thoughts. Blinking slowly, trying his best to ignore the 'real world' and to put himself back into his 'happy place' again, Choutarou actually felt a smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he imagined a certain scenario..

_"Choutarou!" Shishido Senpai exclaimed from a distance, worry laced in his angered voice as he ran towards his favourite kouhai, who was tied up pitifully on the bed. Choutarou raised his head towards the voice as his eyes widened at the familiarity of that sweet, loving sound, tears finding his way towards his eyes.._

_His bondage was abruptly loosen with a couple of frustrated growls from his Senpai, and finally, Choutarou felt the greatest wave of relief wash past him as the dark cloth wrapped around his head was removed. Blinking into the sudden light, Choutarou squinted slightly before he was thrown off balance once again - For Shishido Senpai had just pulled him into the biggest hug he could ever hope for. Burying his head against the sudden warmth of Shishido Senpai's chest, Choutarou felt a sob build up in his throat as his blood fought its way up to his cheeks. Oh, how he wished that this moment could last, but more importantly, he wanted to see Shishido Senpai face to face.. As though able to read Choutarou's mind, Shishido Senpai drew back slightly, and closed the distance between them again, making their foreheads touch each other's lightly._

_"Choutarou, are you alright?" With his eyes locked in Shishido's fierce, auburn gaze, Choutarou started to feel a little light-headed, what with all his blood rushing to his cheeks. Shishido Senpai took his embarrassed silence as an answer, and to his surprise (and joy), the mahogany-haired senior leaned in, and landed a soft kiss on Choutarou's lips, almost causing the junior to faint in happiness. Oh, Shishido Senpai.._

_"Thank godness you're alright.. I was so worried about you, Choutarou.."_

However, his calm (daydream) didn't last for long. Sinking into a daze-like state, Choutarou closed his eyes slowly and sighed, causing his shoulders to relax and to fall. Then, a sudden gasp was caught in his throat harshly as Choutarou felt something run down the length of his left shoulder. It jerked him completely out of his fantasy, causing him to strain forward, also causing the pain at his wrist to worsen. It felt like someone, or _something _was caressing him, and Choutarou thought it was impossible - He hadn't heard anything approaching, and it was scaring to think about what exactly was happening.

Squeezing his eyes shut and feeling a salted mass of moisture build up behind the dark cloth that covered his eyes, Choutarou whimpered as the feeling of sleek, sliding fingers on his skin continued down the length of his left shoulder, tracing his smooth skin, abruptly ending as the touch was lifted off the tip of his shoulder.

A sudden weight was added to the first set of bonds on his arm - A crumpled pile of silk robes, Choutarou realised as he shifted to accommodate the new weight, whimpering as his bondage continued to torture him. It was frightening to know that he wasn't wearing his own clothes, that he was wearing some robes of silk that reminded oddly of.. Atobe Buchou? But wait.. It can't be..

Besides, his daydream (fantasy) had ended so abruptly.. _And.. Shishido Senpai's kiss.. Oh shit, I shouldn't be thinking about this now.. But.._

That wasn't the most alarming part yet, surprisingly. What's worse was that Choutarou found that he couldn't remembering anything from just before this - Nothing about why he was here, or how he got here. Nothing about what he was meant to do here, or even about who was it who had gotten him here.. Nothing, except for that glare of a brilliantly electic blue that had flashed before his eyes just before he was knocked out. It was, to be truthful, the only solid thing he could remember.

Careful to keep his eyes screwed shut, Choutarou willed himself not to think about it any further than he already had. The only person around him who had eyes of such beauty and intensity would only be Oshitari Senpai, the tensai on their team. Still, that still didn't explain what reason Oshitari Senpai would have to knock him out like that, let alone to tie him to the bed frame in such a torturous manner.

He wanted to know, and he needed to find out. With his fantasy already forgotten for the moment, Choutarou fought back a series of sobs as he continued keeping his eyes screwed shut. However, more urgently, he needed to think about something else right now, or he was going to make the cloth before his eyes permanantly wet, because his tears wouldn't stop now - Choutarou just wanted to get out of this mess right now, nothing more.

..

..

..

_How long more is this wait going to take? Why.. Why isn't anything happening..?_

It took a while for the voices to reach him, but the sound of things getting knocked over was easily spotted by the silver-haired boy almost at once. Soon enough, the sounds of conversation caught his attention; It was only natural, for he had been trapped alone in this silence for so long.. Long enough for him to lose track of the time. Choutarou's eyelids fluttered open to the familiar voices, and even though he couldn't see through his blindfold, the second year still tried his best to concentrate on the increasingly louder voices, until..

For the third time since he had awoken, Choutarou found himself shaking his head in confusion, almost denial. The other voices in the background were easily blended into a blur of conversations, but one particular voice stood out among the others - It was a voice he was so used to hearing, a voice he loved so much, a voice he wished he could hear forever in his ears. However, Choutarou really didn't know how to place the owner of that voice into the situation he was in..

_Why.. What has Shishido Senpai got to do with all of this.._


	3. Wishing upon

**Disclaimer :** I do not own Prince of Tennis & the hot tennis princes inside, although like everyone else out there, I really wish I did.

**Note to all : **A special dedication to my favourite Silver pair from Hyoutei, Prince of Tennis, on Shishido Ryou's birthday! (29th September) I'm aware that it's been half a year since I've touched this story, hontou ni gomenasai yo, minna-san T.T

_Finally.. Part 3!_

**I know it's so super late, but still, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHISHIDO RYOU!**

* * *

No, this can't be good at all. Usually, nothing's good when Oshitari gives his eerie chuckle, it's even worse to have Atobe's evil smirk along with it. Something must be terribly wrong. Shishido Ryou's slender fingers found their way to his temple as he traced repeated circular patterns lightly, to help himself think. Just a couple of months ago, Oshitari and Gakuto had somehow convinced his poor kouhai to put himself up in a human-sized wrapped up gift box to surprise him after the tough matches they'd won in the last tournament, and things had gotten all confusing and embarrassing. This time, who know what they had convinced Choutarou to do.. Another drop of sweat found its way down his cheeks this time, and Ryou couldn't help but to shake his head lightly at Gakuto's comment about cakes.

Wait a minute.. Cake? They brought a cake?

"Mukahi senpai, you know perfectly well who the cake is for-"

"Of course I know! But it's unfair, I want to have cake on Ryou's birthday too-"

"Gakuto, keep quiet, or it'll be more rounds for you. Kabaji, have you found it yet?"

"Usu."

"Atobe, you're not planning to-"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO I WANT A CAKE TOO-"

"Shut up, Mukahi senpai-"

".. I wanted to say, you're not planning to-"

"How about you do the shutting up, Hiyoshi-"

"I've already-"

"No you're not-"

"Enough! Ore-sama has decided that the both of you shall-"

"Atobe!"

"Buchou!"

"It's not me-"

"I'm not the one-"

"- who started it-"

"Says who, you lousy-"

"Enough, the both of you! That'll be a hundred rounds tomorrow for each of you. Ore-sama will add fifty more for each word you say from now on." Atobe had saved the day for now - Gakuto and Hiyoshi were reduced to glaring at each other, the former sniffling slightly because he was bullied and his boyfriend didn't stand up for him, the latter alternating his angry glare from Gakuto to Atobe. Ryou sighed, and dropped his hands as he glanced towards Kabaji's direction.. Also spotting the can of whipped cream as he did, only just in time for him to react as Kabaji caught his eyes and tossed the mentioned can towards him.

Fingers curling reflexively around the foreign can, Ryou raised a brow as he glanced at Kabaji, then the can, then Atobe, then Oshitari, then back to the can once again.

The cold, circular shaped metal felt odd in his hands, and Ryou held it away from him instinctively, as though afraid it'll spring up to bite him. Somehow, he had a horrible feeling pertaining to this.. Whipped cream..

"Whipped cream? What, am I going to be decorating my own cake?"

His question was met only with raised brows, anticipating giggles, and exasperated sighs.

"Oh, don't worry, you _will_ be needing that later.."

* * *

Tears, like pearl off a broken necklace, continued falling from his eyes and dissolving into the dark cloth still wrapped tightly around his head. Twice, Choutarou urged himself to take in deep, measured breaths as he waited quietly, begging in his heart for his sentence, no matter what form it may take, to come. Thoughts in the form of haunting whispers by his ear wrecked at his control, but Choutarou forced himself to continue recalling the day's events as he tried to stay still in the same position.

To be honest, he wasn't even quite sure if an entire day had passed. Time didn't quite mean anything to him at the moment, since he couldn't even tell whether it was dark or bright outside.

He recalled doodling much more than usual during classes, and how distracted he had been throughout the whole day - Shishido senpai had passed by his classroom twice before their first break. Briefly, he recalled the disappointment he felt when he received news that Shishido senpai wouldn't join him for both recess and lunch-break earlier in the day, and how he had chased the unhappiness away by heading down to the tennis courts for.. Practice. If that was where he had been knocked out, it seemed logical to put Oshitari senpai into the picture.. But what reason did Hyoutei's tennis tensai have, to put him into such a situation? Oshitari senpai didn't seem like the kind of person to attack someone else, and if there was anyone who would be more than willing to hit him like that, it'll be Hiyoshi. But even Hiyoshi wouldn't hit him for no good reason, let alone knock him up and tie him to a bed.

Choutarou sighed, concluding that he couldn't quite come up with anything..

Until he started trying to remember today's date.

If he wasn't mistaken, and if the day hasn't ended, it would be the 29th of September today. 29th September.. OH! Shishido senpai's birthday! That would explain all the memories he had of the day, and the gaps in his recollections he had failed to register; but it was no help as to why he was knocked out.

It took a while for the voices to reach him, but the sound of things getting knocked over was easily spotted by the silver-haired boy almost at once. Soon enough, the sounds of conversation caught his attention, having been trapped alone in this silence for so long.. Long enough for him to even lose track of the time. Choutarou's eyelids fluttered open to the familiar voices as he turned his head to the general direction of the voices, and even though he couldn't see through his blindfold, the second year still tried his best to concentrate on the increasingly louder voices, until..

For the third time since he had awoken, Choutarou found himself shaking his head in confusion, almost denial. The other voices in the background were easily blended into a blur of conversations, but one particular voice stood out among the others - a voice he was too familiar with. However, Choutarou really didn't know how to place the owner of that voice into the situation he was in..

_It__'__s Shishido senpai's birthday alright__.. __But w__hat has Shishido __s__enpai got to do with all of this..?_

With his heart beating painfully in his chest, Choutarou found himself straining against his bonds as he tried to catch the voices more clearly. Shishido senpai's voice is distinct, but so were a few others - Atobe-buchou's soft, amused voice, the loud, excited voice of Mukahi senpai, and the deep, calm voice of Oshitari senpai reached him after a while, and it seemed they were the only few talking to Shishido senpai, while the mass of footsteps suggested that there were more people outside.

Then it hit him - Oshitari senpai's striking eyes staring straight into his, being knocked out near the tennis courts, the silk robes that belongs to Atobe buchou, and the bonds.. Oh, the bonds..

_"We'll leave the last part of the celebrations to you, Ootori."_

Vaguely, he recalled being surrounded by snickers, and being stroked gently on his cheeks by Atobe-buchou as his mind tried in vain to fight against the thick fog in his head brought about by the heavy blow he received by none other than Hiyoshi.

Biting down on his lips, Choutarou forced back a note of hysteria as he dropped his head. He was feeling more nervous than ever before.. Except now, it was for an entirely different reason.

* * *

It took quite a while to get Gakuto to settle down, but with the help of Oshitari Yuushi, the red head finally agreed to proceed with everyone to the second level of his house - "for the final show" were his exact words, although they didn't quite explain anything at all. Ryou understood not what they have planned, but upon hearing how they've left his birthday cake in his room, the mahogany haired boy realised that he would have no choice but to follow.

"Neh Yuushi, do you think he'll be okay?"

"I wonder.."

There isn't a fridge on the second level of his house, after all. Brows furrowing in worry, Ryou kept his head low as his fingers continued massaging the area near his temples, trying to relieve as much pent-up stress as possible - unnecessarily accumulated stress from his stupid teammates.

"Oshitari, ore-sama did warn you that-"

"Atobe, you were the one who suggested-"

It'll be terrible if they've made a mess; worse, if they've attracted a horde of ants into his room. He had already enough trouble cleaning up the whole house on his own, no thanks to his father.. If they've made a bigger mess for him to clear-

"Ore-sama shall not-"

"Well, maybe he's still asleep!"

Uncontrollably, the conversation around him had dissolved into but another annoyed buzz by his ears, one he was used to ignoring ever since it became an almost daily thing.

"Let's hope he remembers.."

"Ootori should be awake by now-"

"- but Hiyoshi's strike was hard!"

Ryou was so deep in his thoughts, he hadn't noticed he had been led unknowningly all the way to the door of his room. Stopping just before he knocked into Kabaji, the mahogany haired boy looked around, and noticed how the Hyoutei regulars were crowding infront of his room, smirking at him in such a manner, it made him feel extremely uncomfortable and nervous.

"Wait.." Ryou frowned, pushing his way through the gathered group to the door to his room, whipping around so that he had his back against it. "How the hell did you guys know where my room was?"

He was greeted by silence, and he could tell they were all thinking along the lines of, "What, were we not supposed to know?" However, the only person who had entered his house and his room was Choutarou, and Choutarou happened to also be the only person who had access to his keys.

"It's hard to believe he's truly clueless.."

"Senpai, your keys."

"Did you honestly miss something that obvious?"

"... Ore-sama cannot imagine-"

"The bow was bright crimson-"

"- Yeah, KEYS!"

Prompted by his teammates, Ryou unwillingly stuck his hands into his pocket, to fish out his keys. As he wondered vaguely what was it that kept him so attracted to their company, his eyes finally spotted a tiny bow, bright crimson and neatly knotted, resting around his room key.

"I locked it from inside, just so you know. You're the only one that can open the door now," Oshitari added softly, his eyes sparkling with amusement as he reached out to take Gakuto's hand, ignoring the red-head's protests. "So, we should get going. Enjoy your cake, Shishido."

By the time he finally grasped his team's tensai's words, the Hyoutei regulars had already made their way back down the stairs, and were back on the ground floor, searching for the front door.

"What, you guys are not staying for the cake?" Ryou yelled after them, questions after questions flooding his head.

"We can't share it with you, Ryou! I bet you won't share it either way!" exclaimed the red-head, poking his head back into the stairway for the briefest moment, to shoot a smirk in Ryou's direction. "Although we'll all love to share a proper birthday cake.." he added as he withdrew his head.

"We'll let ourselves out on our own," a muffled voice added as they drifted further and further away.

That was all Ryou needed to know that something was seriously wrong.


	4. Wondering

**Disclaimer :** I do not own Prince of Tennis & the hot tennis princes inside, although like everyone else out there, I really wish I did.

**Note to all : **A special dedication to my favourite Silver pair from Hyoutei, Prince of Tennis, on Shishido Ryou's birthday! (29th September) I realised how long I've procrastinated this story for.. And that's why I shall finish this story on Ryou's birthday coming in 2+ months' time! -inserts grin here-

... _detta! Part 4 decchu!_

At this rate it'll be Ryou's birthday everyday, but isn't that great?  
**Happy Birthday, Shishido Ryou!**

* * *

Ryou's mind was mercifully blank as he finally mustered enough courage to wrench the door to his room open, having stood shuffling in front of it for a full minute even after his teammates have all left. Even as he tried to focus on the keys hanging from the keyhole jungle with the movement of the door, though, one sweeping look at his room was enough to freeze him onto his spot with a loud gasp, and a single thought shooting though his temporarily frozen brain.

_Damn you, Atobe Keigo, _Ryou cursed internally. Somewhere outside his house out on the lawn, a sneeze issued from a berry bush just underneath his room's window as Ryou felt the corners of his lips twitch with agitation. He wanted to run away as far as possible away from his room right now, but damn, his conscience would never let him.

Everything in his room was blanketted with a thin layer of cherry glow, gentle pink rays thrown all over the room from a foreign light newly installed on his ceiling; a glance towards a corner of his room would have confirmed Ryou's suspicions about his previous normal light - and it's unfortunately brutal murder, how its remains now lay abandoned by the side. Oh hell was the new light girly - he'd have to demand them to reinstall his white lights tomorrow.

Tools he'd seen before but never saw the need to own now lay spread across his study table, which said something because Ryou's study table was large for a room this size. While his gaze was barely held by the first few items, Ryou soon found himself having to stop and stare at a familiar looking piece of silk sash, followed by a leather whip, then an elegantly shaped pocket knife that followed after. The only thing worse was probably how he could tell who these items previously belonged to, and who had so kindly assembled them - the corners of his lips twitched again with all the effort he was putting in, trying not to curse out loud.

A second sneeze, quiet but distinct, sounded from the same berry bush beneath his room window. It was accompanied by a muffled groan and unintelligible curses as a certain red head struck his elbow into a certain blue-haired male's side.

Vaguely, Ryou realised they've put in quite some effort to remake his room; although very unfortunately, he liked his room the way it was before.

Oh, who knows what his father would say should the older male find his room in this state before he did..

Details aside, no matter how disgusting or feminine he deemed the pale pink light to be, no matter how disturbing the various objects lying on his study table were, they were still unable to keep his eyes from locking in the direction of his bed - after all, it was the largest thing in his room. It was, also, the thing he least needed to concentrate on right now.

And that was only because the person sitting on his bed, even though Ryou could tell with one look that he was in this situation involuntarily, was so torturously beautiful, so captivating and so.. _Hot_, it hurts - and it was not the usual pain too. It was an ache pertaining to the sudden damn buldge in his pants.

Ryou didn't know whether to curse or to cry out loud, or to run out of the house to prepare to kill a couple of somebody now. Oh, right. He'd still have to free his junior first.

Sweat, flowing gently like a blanket of fallen cherry blossoms on the last chapter of spring, covered the boy on his bed from head to toe, and only when he was studying so intensely did Ryou realised abruptly that his junior was almost nude, shivering so hard while sitting on the bed with his legs stretched out in front of him. The black blindfold seemed harmless enough, but even with the dim lighting Ryou could see the clear tear tracks which had escaped from beneath the no-doubt soaked fabric. Painful bonds decorating his junior's arms and upper body (he assumed), but they were so artfully done Ryou wondered vaguely if the tensai of his team had a fetish for such.. Activity. No wonder Gakuto was usually so active in school, seeing how the red head would be bounded during the couple's free time.. What the hell was he thinking about? Startled by his own track of thoughts, Ryou shuddered, blinking away before returning his attention onto his junior. And damn, is that one of Atobe's silk robes hanging loosely off his junior? Right, it probably is. So that's where the sash came from.

Hell, he felt the need to gorge out Oshitari's eyes for even seeing his junior in this state. But since Choutarou was still asleep when he was first left in this position, and ultimately he had to thank the tensai for his work of art..

Ryou almost smacked his head as he found himself inching closer to his bed, upon realising all he had been thinking about the whole while. What he needed to do, and to concentrate on right now was freeing his junior.

The can of whipped cream fell from his slackened grasp, clattered onto the floor more than noisily, and rolled towards his study table.

* * *

Sounds of the door swinging open, followed by the loud gasp, was more than enough to startle him, badly; especially since they had all followed the previous silence so suddenly. The realisation that he was being studied followed, and Choutarou didn't know whether he should just burst out crying right now. It was still so dark-

Although he knew what to expect, this was more than what he could take.. Choutarou tried to comfort himself mentally.

Then, the loud clattering made his body jump forward involuntarily, tightening the bonds already strained against his tortured limbs. As a strangled cry escaped his dry throat, the junior felt another weight join his on the bed, sinking the mattress down, and the shock was all he needed to force his mouth shut, numbing the pain he felt as well. There was someone else here with him, right there with him, and that was all his mind could process in the paralyzing shock.

The sound of controlled, but ragged breathing approached him from in front, and Choutarou bit down hard on his lips while holding his breath. Who was this? His body tensed as he prepared to kick out with his legs should he needed to, and suddenly, a pair of slender, gentle hands landed on his shoulders. With a sigh, his company grasped the silk robes that had fallen, and pulled it back up again, resting the cool fabric back onto his sounders, and smoothing it down against his chest and further down front. The touch seemed to mean no harm, although they lingered against his chest for a little too long for comfort..

Though, honestly, the fingers dancing fleetingly across his skin felt oddly familiar..

"Shishido.. senpai..?" the silver haired boy whispered tentatively, and he felt the other tense above him before drawing away with a sigh. "Don't move," his senior murmured, and Choutarou shuddered at how the older boy's breath washed a warm wave by his ear, hinting at how close they were. "I have to try to free you from.. Erm, this."

Choutarou felt the weight around him shirt, and shuffled nervously as the mattress slightly behind him sank. Blood rushed to his cheeks, for reasons entirely different from before. He could almost imagine the look of concentration, exasperation and annoyance, the faint furrow of Shishido senpai's brows, and the gleam he loved to see in Shishido senpai's hazel eyes as he worked in silence..

Which reminded him abruptly of how he was still blind folded.

"Ano... Shishido senpai," started the younger boy slowly, struggling to keep from trembling as he felt his senior push the sleeves of his silk robes up, presumably to take a better look at the bonds - although Choutarou was happy to admit he hoped otherwise. "I can't.. See.. The blindfold.."

"Oh, right," Choutarou heard the older boy's voice issue from somewhere diagonally behind himself, and flushed when he heard the soft, frustrated growl issued from his companion's lips. "Give me a moment-"

"No rush- Ow ow owww.."

A wave of pain shot through his forearms, straight through his body. He didn't know what Shishido senpai did, but it sure hurt - and the next thing he knew, Shishido senpai was apologising hurriedly, warm fingers storking his arms as though he thought it might somehow take the pain away.

Truthfully, it did help take his mind off the pain.

"Choutarou," Shishido senpai was speaking, almost growling, in this strained, controlled tone that was making his blood rush to a region that really didn't need the attention, and Choutarou had to force himself to concentrate on his senior's words rather than his senior's voice. "Could you.. Could I keep the blindfold on you for just a little bit more?"

Not knowing what to expect, Choutarou nodded stiffly, his eyes widening behind the black fabric that blindfolded him.

* * *

Ryou let out a frustrated growl again, and barely missed the minute trembles wrecking through his junior before him as he leaned in closer, taking in the complicated knot holding the map of bonds together. Damn, Oshitari would be the death of him - this wasn't something that would come loose easily, Ryou sighed as his eyes fell upon the pocket knife on his table once again. This calls for drastic actions.

Thank goodness he left the blindfold on Choutarou. He didn't see the need to scare his junior with the current state of his room right now. Not to mention how the younger would most probably freak out first seeing his own state, and perhaps freak out further if he knew what he was going to attempt.

Sliding himself off the bed, Ryou picked up the pocket knife and drifted back towards his junior; the knife felt comfortable instead of foreign in his hand, but the metallic 'cling' it issued as he slipped the blade out was quite a little too loud for comfort.. Once again, Ryou did not (could not) miss Choutarou's shudders.

Truthfully, even though they've more or less admitted their attraction towards each other, held hands and kissed (once, a peck on the lips) before, neither of them thought it was necessary to bring their intimacy to such another level. Sighing, Ryou climbed onto his bed again, kneeling behind Choutarou for a moment before leaning in against his junior's ears,

"I need you to hold still, Choutarou," Ryou murmured, looking away from his junior with a heavy flush on his cheeks. "Don't move, I don't want to hurt you."

However, even though Choutarou did try his best to not shiver with fear (and maybe anticipation, though Ryou would never know), Ryou soon realised that the pocket knife couldn't be of much help at all.

The bonds around Choutarou's limbs were so tight, they were cutting into his skin. There was no opening for Ryou to slide the sharp blade underneath the bonds, and had he tried to slice the bonds straight away he would most likely hurt his junior as well. Growling, frustrated, Ryou retreated the sharp edge before tossing the useless thing away.

Shit, so much for drastic actions.

Throwing another disgusted look at the tools on his table, Ryou tried to find something that would help in this situation - he needed to cut the bonds without hurting Choutarou anymore than he had to, or loosen the bonds at least, enough to slip the blade of the knife underneath.

None of the items on his desk suggested anything; hell, he was actually surprised the tensai didn't leave anything resembling a tube of lubricant or something behind, even though he was going to put it to a different use now. Of course, he could leave the room to scout for something that would actually work in the house, like body lotion or something, but he didn't want to leave Choutarou alone in his room again.

As he shifted his glance away from the study table in dismay, a glowing can resting sideward against the leg of his table caught his attention from the corner of his eye.

Ryou liked whipped cream on his cakes and frappe coffee, but that's about it - right now the older boy desperately hoped that whipped cream would work as well as lube, because Ryou had no idea at all.


End file.
